Hiroshima & Nagasaki inspire sculptures, paintings


Express August 08, 2010

LAHORE: An exhibition of paintings and sculptures entitled Remains of Ruins by Bashir Ahmad, the head of the fine arts department at the National College of Arts (NCA), opened at the Alhamra Art Gallery on Saturday.

It is being held in memory of the World War ll nuclear bombing of two Japanese cities, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and aims to promote peace and oppose nuclear war and terrorism. Paintings and sculptures that give insight into the brutality of war are being showcased. One of the sculptures entitled I am a Sumo and I Want Peace shows the mutilated face of a sumo wrestler who has suffered from the after effects of an atomic bomb blast. The sumo wrester, generally considered a symbol of strength in Japan, is shown suffering to illustrate how the atom bomb wreaked havoc with life in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  A sculpture shows a human face which had lost its symmetry due to the heat generated by the explosions. Another sculpture titled I am a Penguin and I want Peace shows a penguin on a pedestal with a statement condemning the use of atomic weapons. Another sculpture depicts two female figures that have fused together.

In a painting titled Buddha Under the Mushroom of Atom, the artist traces the fictional evolution of human violence. Earlier, humans used swords and arrows to acquire territory and power; eventually, men developed weapons of mass destruction and destroyed humanity for their greed. The Buddha is painted black and the smoke above his head indicated that humans continue to search for peace within conflict.

The exhibition will remain open till August 11.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 8th, 2010.

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